Shopping local versus made in China

When I first saw this at the store, I thought it was a new trend of selling locally made goods. Upon further inspection, I thought maybe it was handmade in the USA, which would have been sad because there are so many talented artists that make these items locally. When I saw that it was hand made in CHINA, I was speechless.

I went home to see how many I could find on Etsy that were in the local area. A search for "knitted headbands" in Seattle, WA came up with 7,114 results. The prices ranged higher and lower than the $16 price tag listed in the photo but I estimated that an average locally made headband costs around $20. For about $4 more, a purchase of a locally made one supports a Seattle artist and it was made with care. Paying for the $16 handmade headband from China just fuels the market of outsourced goods and all the politics and issues surrounded that.

There are some headbands on the Etsy listing that I saw that were double the price of the one pictured above and for some, it might not be worth spending that much. However, consider what the materials were used for the item and the work. Maybe the yarn used is higher quality wool or an even softer fiber. Maybe the design of the headband is eccentric and time consuming or an original or unique design. Maybe the headband is adorned with beautiful embellishments.

With that said, don't be so quick to assume that anything handmaid is going to be expensive. One might find a beautiful locally made headband for $16 instead of a handmade one from China.